Chicago schools require visitors to have their license scanned

Chicago - When a trio of privacy rights activists dropped by a Wilmette School District 39 board of education meeting, they told officials that installing a security system that requires visitors to swipe their driver's license before entering school buildings could prove both invasive and unconstitutional.

A school district spokeswoman said officials plan to review the concerns expressed by Wilmette resident Richard Sobel and fellow members of the Cyber Privacy Project.

But District 39 joins school districts across the north suburbs and the country in investing in a driver's license scanning system aimed at preventing registered sex offenders from stepping inside a school building.
 
The LobbyGuard driver's license scanning system has been screening visitors against a sex offender data base prior to their entering New Trier Township High School District 203 buildings for five years, district spokeswoman Nicole Dizon said.

At Glenview District 34, a special committee was created post-Sandy Hook after officials heard an outpouring of concern from parents wondering what precautionary measures were in place at the district's eight schools, spokesman Brett Clark said.

Among the security recommendations is the Raptor visitor management system, which Clark said has received an overwhelmingly positive response from parents.
 
In the span of two minutes, a visitor hands over their driver's license, which is swiped by an administrative assistant. A sticker badge carrying the driver's license image is spit out of miniature printer and the visitor is on their way — unless, of course, the name is flagged by the sex offender database.

"As long as it helps keep our kids safe, I'm willing to do anything, especially with all the things going on in schools these days," said Glenview parent Karolin Hanna, who recently stopped at Glenview District 34's Westbrook Elementary School to drop off warm winter hats for her two children.

"Once we explain that their information will not be saved, and the database is only used for screening registered sex offenders, our visitors are fine with it," said Clark.
Among the audit's recommendations was the purchase of the School Gate Guardian system at a cost of roughly $7,000, with an additional $400 annual fee assessed for each of the district's four schools. Installed in mid-October, the system has not yet detected any visitors who are listed on the sex-offender database, Hewitt said.''

Wilmette District 39 has spent $11,000 on Raptor, which is being tested at the district's administration building, but is not yet operating at district schools, spokeswoman Holly Goldin said.

"The feedback we've gotten from parents is they're thankful we're taking this extra step to make their children safer at school," said Hewitt.

Still, Sobel and officials with the Cyber Privacy Project remain skeptical that such scanning systems enhance student safety.

"Simply requiring people to ring a bell and announce themselves will likely deter most people who shouldn't be in a school from approaching and entering it," Sobel said. "Checking every innocent visitor against a list of offenders is an overly intrusive, high-tech solution unnecessary in a community like Wilmette."
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/suburbs/wilmette_kenilworth/ct-tl-ns-1107-wilmette-school-privacy-rights-20131104,0,116866.story